#me163

[admiralnelsoniii]

The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet is a rocket-powered interceptor aircraft primarily designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt. It is the only operational rocket-powered fighter aircraft in history as well as the first piloted aircraft of any type to exceed 1,000 kilometres per hour (620 mph) in level flight.

Credited with the destruction of between nine and 18 Allied aircraft against ten losses.

Armament

Guns:

2 × 30 mm (1.181 in) Rheinmetall Borsig MK 108 cannon with 60 rpg (B-1a)

or

2 × 20 mm (0.787 in) MG 151/20 cannon with 100 rpg (Ba-1 / B-0 pre-production aircraft)

Germany started small-scale combat operations with the Me 163B in May 1944. The Me 163B's unsurpassed velocity was something Allied fighter pilots were at a loss to counter. The Komets attacked singly or in pairs, often even faster than the intercepting fighters could dive. A typical Me 163 tactic was to fly vertically upward through the bombers at 9,000 m (30,000 ft), climb to 10,700–12,000 m (35,100–39,400 ft), then dive through the formation again, firing as they went. This approach afforded the pilot two brief chances to fire a few rounds from his cannons before gliding back to his airfield. The pilots reported it was possible to make four passes on a bomber, but only if it was flying alone. According to the historian Mano Ziegler, Nazi officials were allegedly considering using the Me 163 to directly ram into enemy aircraft in suicide attacks; this desperate tactic was never actually used.

[shootingstar-design]

Me163 Komet

[dronescapesvideos]

Test Pilot Close Calls With Eric "Winkle" Brown. From the SR.A/1 To The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet

[usafphantom2]

The most famous of Hellmuth Walter's rocket motors was the Kiel Kommandogesellschaft HWK 109-509A-2 bi-propellant liquid-fuelled rocket motor that powered the Messerschmitt Me.163 Komet.

@ron_eisele via X

[pinturas-sgm-aviacion]

1945 01 Me163 Komet EJG2 - Takayoshi Wada - box art Hasegawa

[kasperl-ruprecht]

The Me163 Komet - Rockets Are Dangerous

[ultrajaphunter]

FAST AS A ROCKET! GIANT ME163 KOMET RC TURBINE JET FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION

[dutifullybabyrebel]

【戦闘機解説】第二次世界大戦時、ドイツ空軍で運用された、Me163 コメート 驚異的なスピードで飛翔する姿は敵に衝撃を与えましたが、事故も多かっ...

[duckduckg]

Me163

[michaelcosio]

Jan 28, 2011

In WW2, the rocket-powered, tailless Messerschmitt Me163 Komet interceptor was on the leading edge of aerospace technology — its mission, a last-ditch German effort to defend the Reich.

Last year, on a visit organised by the Royal Aeronautical Society's Munich Branch, we had the opportunity to interview one of the few surviving Me163 pilots, Dr Reinhard Opitz, on his experiences in flying this rare aircraft, within the apt surroundings of the Messerschmitt Museum at EADS/Cassidian Manching. The Museum, on the EADS facility, is home to the EADS Heritage Flight, a unique collection showcasing part of German aeronautical history.

from Royal Aeronautical Society

[theworldatwar]

Test pilot Rudolf Opitz works on his Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet. It remains the only operational rocket powered fighter aircraft in history and the first piloted aircraft of any type to exceed 1,000 kilometres per hour (620 mph) in level flight. In 1944 unofficial records show he reached a top speed of over 1200kmh (745 mph)

[beautifulwarbirds]

[shootingstar-design]

Me 163 Komet

[dronescapesvideos]

The Rocket Planes War. Genius, Politics, And Corruption. From the Me 163 Komet to the Saunders-Roe SR.177. Featuring Eric "Winkle" Brown ➤➤ VIDEO ➤➤ https://youtu.be/hy7yQv7Owgg https://youtu.be/_InegQxwbwE #Me163 #EricBrown #Aviation #rocketpower #SkunkWorks #Lockheed #SaundersRoe

[usafphantom2]

Desperate Measures - Messerschmitt Me163 vs B-17s, art by Michael Turner

@ron_eisele via X

[pinturas-sgm-aviacion]

1943 Me163 prototype - Stan Hajek